


Felix Culpa

by teeandrainbows



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - The Proposal Fusion, F/M, Romantic Comedy, Sexual Tension
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-22
Updated: 2020-12-23
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:34:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,905
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28253241
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/teeandrainbows/pseuds/teeandrainbows
Summary: Varrick is the intimidating boss at Varrick Global Industries, and Zhu Li is his ever dutiful assistant. When Varrick is faced with being deported back to the Southern Water Tribe, he makes a split second decision that affects both his and Zhu Li's lives.
Relationships: Varrick/Zhu Li Moon
Kudos: 16





	1. Meeting Mr Varrick

**Author's Note:**

> I realized I had never cross-posted this from ff.net so I'll be uploading the first three chapters right now and hopefully begin updating this in the new year!
> 
> Felix Culpa is an AU based off of one of my absolute favourite movies, The Proposal starring Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds! It was originally posted on ff.net in February, 2015, and served as my final entry to Zhurrick Week that year!

It was a beautiful, bright and sunny day in Republic City, and Zhu Li wasn't able to enjoy one bit of it. She couldn't, not with her job requiring her to wake up before the crack of dawn. By the time the sun had started to rise above the horizon, she had already washed and dressed herself, left her small apartment in the Badger Mole Borough and was on the train for her daily commute into the downtown core. As she sat in silence, watching the world go by, the young woman had time to think - her only chance during the day to do so. Every day, she sat on the train, watching the statue of Fire Lord Zuko grow closer and closer.

When the train finally stopped, Zhu Li slowly picked herself up off the rather uncomfortable seat. She joined the crowds of people leaving the train, and it was only when she took a moment to pause one final time before the hectic part of her day that she noticed the large clock above the platforms.

"Oh, no..." she breathed to herself, starting to walk briskly towards the exit of the station. Somehow, her train was late, and now she had even less time than usual to finish getting everything set up in time for her eccentric boss to arrive at work. Zhu Li was nothing if not prepared, however, and she had been setting plans in motion in the event something like this happened ever since she had first discovered how specific her boss could be.

Her first stop was the cafe just outside the train station, where thanks to years of ordering the exact same order at the exact same time from the exact same barista, her order was ready before she even walked into the building. Amid groans and complaints, she walked up to the counter, took the tray of two identical drinks and left some yuans. "Thank you," she breathed, turning and walking out of the cafe. Next she had to stop and pick up a copy of the paper, since her boss had decided that somehow buying the paper from a cart every day was less expensive than getting a subscription delivered to the office. Her final stop before work was a small bakery where she picked up her boss’ favourite pastry for his mid morning break, and a sandwich for his lunch - both were pre-ordered, of course.

Finally, as the clocks hit 8am, Zhu Li finally walked into the office building. From the relieved expressions on the other employees' faces, Mr Varrick had not arrived yet. He was probably busy dreaming up new inventions on the street corner, she thought as she walked briskly across the floor and unlocked her boss's personal office. All around her, other employees were murmuring, chatting about their nights, wondering why Zhu Li was late, discussing the weather… just another typical work morning. They had only a few moments of solace before the infamous businessman would walk through the doors. She hid her own coffee out of sight and drew a breath.

As the assistant took her position, standing in front of the oaken desk, a silence fell over the floor that would be strange to anyone who didn't work there. Every employee collectively held their breath as the door opened and their boss came strolling in, his eyes darting around and watching all of them closely. No one spoke to Mr Varrick, and Mr Varrick spoke to no one until he reached his office.

“Your coffee, sir,” Zhu Li said in her most monotone voice, holding out the cup to him. Mr Varrick grinned widely at her.

“Thank you, Zhu Li,” he took a sip, “ah, perfect as always. I don’t know how you do it!” he exclaimed, and Zhu Li relaxed. Everything had worked out the way she needed it to, and now her day could properly start. She had just turned to pull out the paperwork she knew he would be asking for when Mr Varrick said her name. She turned back.

“Yes, sir?” she asked, wondering what he needed. This was unusual, even for him.

“Did you get my pastry this morning? I need it before I go to the, uh, the thing. You know,” Mr Varrick replied, gesturing towards his planner. She immediately nodded in understanding. He had a meeting in an hour with the head of Future Industries to discuss working together on a major upcoming project, and Asami Sato was notoriously difficult to crack since she had almost lost her business after taking over from her father. She bent down without a word, pulling the packaged treat out of her bag and handing it over to him. Mr Varrick unwrapped it and took a slow bite, chewing almost thoughtfully. Zhu Li knew it was all for show, though. Her stomach rumbled, and she prayed her boss hadn’t heard. Luck was on her side, and she relaxed, sneaking a sip of her own coffee while the man was enjoying his snack.

His phone rang, and Mr Varrick quickly told Zhu Li to answer it. Glancing at him as he licked powdered sugar off his fingers, Zhu Li picked up the phone.

“Varrick Global Industries, Mr Varrick’s office,” she answered.

“Hello? I am representing Miss Asami Sato of Future Industries. Miss Sato was supposed to meet with Mr Varrick today, but unfortunately that will not happen. Miss Sato is not interested in doing business with Mr Varrick anymore,” a small, timid voice on the other end of the line said. Zhu Li kept her expression neutral.

“That is a shame. Thank you for letting us know,” she replied, hanging up. She looked up towards Mr Varrick.

“Sato, hm?” he asked. She nodded. “Well, that’s just horrible! We needed this business deal. I’ll bet someone leaked my big plan to buy out Future Industries,” he continued on. Zhu Li fought to keep a neutral expression still. No one had known about that, except for her. If he kept talking about it, though…

Mr Varrick flopped down in the large chair behind his desk. “Bring in Lu. And while you’re at it, ask him why his name isn’t Lee,” he said, waving his hand absently towards the door. Zhu Li nodded, walking out. All heads in the office turned to watch her walk along the edge of the room to Lu’s office, and she could hear murmurs. She ignored them, of course.

“Mr Varrick would like to see you,” she said simply, after knocking on Lu’s door. The young Marketing Committee chair looked up, confused.

“Okay?” he replied, standing up and following Zhu Li back to Mr Varrick’s office only to find that their boss was gone. Lu arched an eyebrow at Zhu Li, who glanced at the closest intern to the door, Masaka. She shrugged and pointed over her shoulder.

“He slipped out right behind you and went that way,” she replied. Lu nudged Zhu Li’s foot with her own and she looked up to see Mr Varrick walking back towards them, holding a piece of paper in his hand.

“Lu! You’re fired.”

All heads in the room turned sharply upon hearing their boss. Lu looked shocked, and Zhu Li was speechless.

“Mr Varrick, sir, I--” Lu started, before being cut off.

“I have reason to believe that you tipped off the owner of Future Industries about my ultimate business plans, which then caused said plans to be cancelled by said owner. Also, you’re terrible at your job. Zhu Li does a better job at your job than you do and she’s only my assistant!” Mr Varrick said, waving the piece of paper at Lu. “I signed this, you sign it now, and you leave and never come back. And if you don’t leave, Zhu Li here will do the thing and make sure you can’t get another job,” he continued. Zhu Li was starting to feel very uncomfortable, even as Mr Varrick walked past the two of them and snapped his fingers, the sign for her to follow. She did, giving Lu a sympathetic glance.

“Just wait a moment!”

Mr Varrick paused, turning around slowly without lifting his feet. Zhu Li sidestepped neatly, now standing against the wall as Lu continued.

“You can’t do this to me! I’ll go and tell everyone in Republic City what you did,” he said, glancing around the office. Every single intern was frozen, their eyes darting between their boss and the newly fired man. Zhu Li closed her eyes as Varrick let out a low sigh.

“I have every right to do this. I want you out of this building before Zhu Li here can take my coffee to Chit Sing and get it reheated,” he said, all trace of his usual whimsical nature gone as he gazed at the other man. Lu looked down, shaking his head.

“Fine,” he muttered, turning around and walking quickly out of the office. The air was tense as the interns tried not to look at Mr Varrick.

“Do your things,” he said dismissively, turning and walking into his office. Masaka started to relax but at a sharp glance from Zhu Li, she snapped back to attention just in time for Mr Varrick to poke his head out the door, holding out his coffee cup.

“And Zhu Li, do the thing,” he said. She took it from him.

“Yes, sir.”


	2. An Unwelcome Decision

When Zhu Li returned with Mr Varrick’s coffee, freshly heated thanks to Chit Sing, she was met with the sight of her boss leaning back in his chair, legs propped up on the table, pastry back in hand. She stood in the doorway, politely waiting for his invitation to enter, considering he was likely in a bad mood after the news about Asami Sato and his subsequent firing of Lu. She had heard the murmurings among the other employees while she was getting his coffee heated. It seemed Lu was already spreading slander about Mr Varrick to anyone who would listen. Damage control would be necessary.

“Zhu Li, why are you just standing there? Get over here and give me my coffee!” he spoke suddenly, and the assistant snapped to attention, taking a closer look. He seemed oddly… calm. He wasn’t fidgeting, he wasn’t clenching his jaw, he wasn’t even staring absently at the wall. He was looking directly at her, a cheeky grin on his lips, and he was casually drumming his fingers on the arm of his chair. He was scheming. Zhu Li walked forward, setting the coffee cup on his desk beside his legs, and retreated to the corner of the room.

“Mr Varrick, sir. Is everything alright?” she asked, absently noticing a file sticking out of the trash. She had carefully placed it on his desk earlier, hoping he would look at her own design idea. Knowing her boss, it wasn’t worth pursuing further. If he didn’t like something, then it wouldn’t happen.

“I’m just fine, Zhu Li!” He swung his legs off the desk, narrowly missing the cup of coffee. “I just got a call from President Raiko! It seems he had an important matter to discuss with me! I woooonder what that could be?” he stood up, reaching over and pulling her towards him. Zhu Li, having grown to expect this sort of action from him, let him.

“Maybe he wants to discuss the plans to build the new VarriTransit system?” she offered. He wrapped his arm around her, pulling her close.

“Haven’t you ever heard of a question that doesn’t need an answer because we both already know it?” he asked her, a comically large frown now on his face. Arching an eyebrow, Zhu Li gave a shrug.

“It’s called a rhetorical question, sir,” she replied, keeping her voice dry and expressionless. Mr Varrick merely clapped her shoulders.

“I can always count on you to tell it how it is!” he exclaimed, stepping away from her, “Now, I have to make my way over to Raiko’s office. You’re not coming with me, though,” he waved off her impending opposition with a laugh, “Buuuuuuut you will be leaving approximately twenty minutes after me to show up and inform me that I simply have to return to the office to deal with whatever crisis you can think of. Meetings with Raiko can be so boring at times. Better to get it over with quickly than have him ramble on for too long!”

Zhu Li nodded slowly, allowing herself a moment to process his plan. It was actually pretty plausible, and it would give her the chance to run damage control if his meeting went sour.

“Yes, sir. Best of luck, sir,” she replied, meeting his gaze. He looked almost boyish, with his large grin and sparkling eyes.

“In the meantime, go over the design ideas from the interns and make sure none of your designs cross my desk ever again. You’re my assistant; I can’t be showing favourites!”

Zhu Li frowned. “Yes, sir.”

Once Mr Varrick had left the office, Zhu Li allowed herself a moment to relax, sitting down in his chair and leaning back. She practiced her deep breathing, a technique she had learned from Mr Varrick’s last assistant before the man had left to retire with what was left of his sanity in some small, unknown village in the Fire Nation. It was true, Mr Varrick was a force to be reckoned with, but she felt like she was making some headway. At least he had actually noticed she had some ideas for designs this time. He could change, she was sure of it. Now she just had to convince the rest of the world.

The door to Mr Varrick’s door opened and Zhu Li sat up straight, at attention. 

“Yes, Masaka?” she asked, tilting her head to the side. The young intern shrugged.

“I just thought, since Mr Varrick wasn’t around, you’d be able to help me win the office bet on how long it’ll take before he does one of your designs. I was thinking probably next month? Does that sound reasonable?” Masaka asked, playing with the ends of her hair. Zhu Li took in the young woman, reminded of herself in her early days working at Varrick Global Industries.

“I’m sorry, Masaka, but it doesn’t look like Mr Varrick will be using my designs any time soon, if at all,” she replied, shrugging. She gave a pointed glance at the folder in the trash bin. Masaka surprised her by walking over and pulling it out, cringing at the jelly fingerprints on the front. That didn’t deter her from opening it, however.

“Zhu Li, this looks amazing. It’s much better than the proposal I proofread from Chit Sing last week. Mr Varrick would be crazy to not want to—“

“Mr Varrick has his reasons, Masaka,” Zhu Li cut her off, frowning, “And I respect them. You should too, if you want to keep your job.”

Masaka shied away, quickly dropping the folder back in the bin and backing out of the office. Once she was gone, Zhu Li let out a long sigh and stood up, checking the time. It was finally time for her to go save Mr Varrick from the meeting with President Raiko. She thought about who would be the best person to leave in charge, and decided to stop by Chit Sing’s office before she left.

Once she finally arrived at President Raiko’s office, down the street from Mr Varrick’s building, she took a deep breath and made her way through the halls and stopping just outside the double oaken doors separating her from her boss and the leader of Republic City. She could just hear the two men speaking inside, but couldn’t make out any of the words. Taking a breath, she rehearsed the story in her mind before knocking on the door. The voices inside stopped and she heard President Raiko call for her to come in. Zhu Li opened the door just enough for her to slide in, and smiled pleasantly at the two men. Mr Varrick looked uncomfortable, and President Raiko looked frustrated. She wondered what they had been talking about.

“Your assistant, Varrick?” Raiko asked, arching an eyebrow. Mr Varrick nodded, and Raiko frowned. “Well, she’ll have to wait a moment. As I was saying, I’m terribly sorry, but this is an unavoidable situation. My hands are tied. Now, if you’ll just sign this contract here, we can get on with the proceedings.”

It didn’t take direct eye contact for Zhu Li to know that Mr Varrick was suddenly scheming. His entire body perked up, and he turned to glance at his assistant before looking back at Raiko.

“Actually, sir…” he looked back at Zhu Li, gesturing for her to come closer. Zhu Li frowned, trying to figure out what he was planning, and he sighed. Before she knew it, he was stepping towards her, sliding his arm around her waist. “I was hoping for a better opportunity to tell you, but… Zhu Li and I did the whole proposal thing while you were off on your visit to Fire Lord Izumi! We’re getting married!”

Zhu Li’s head turned sharply. “What?”


	3. The Deal

~~20 minutes earlier~~

Varrick sat down, crossing his left leg over his right and leaning back comfortably. Even in Raiko’s office, he wasn’t about to sacrifice his comfort. Of course, he would have been happier had Zhu Li been here with him, but he was confident his plan would work. Raiko would have enough time to say whatever it was he had to say, and then Zhu Li would sweep in and save him from any further attempts at niceties. After all, he was a busy man! He had work to do! There wasn’t anyone in Republic City who could have dreamed up a more ingenious plan than his own.

The door opened behind him and he didn’t bother to twist his neck, instead waiting for the older man to make his painstakingly slow way past him to sit at the desk. This was a situation Varrick rarely found himself in, sitting on this side of the office desk. Even the chair was less comfortable. He absently felt a twinge of sympathy for anyone he had sit in this chair in his office, but brushed it away quickly in favour of shooting a wide, toothy smile at the president.

“Well hello there, Mr President! How are you today?” he asked, resisting the urge to scratch at an itch behind his ear. He couldn’t stop his right foot from twitching, tapping the carpeted floor, though. The man in front of him was sitting up straight, as if there were a rod down his back, and regarding him with an unreadable expression. Well, unreadable to anyone but Varrick, of course! He could tell Raiko had something important to tell him.

“Varrick, thank you for joining me. We have much to discuss,” Raiko replied, ignoring the pleasantries and going straight to business. So like him. “I received interesting information today. Do you know what it was?”

Sprawled out over the chair such that he was, Varrick gave a slight shrug of his shoulder. If Zhu Li were here, she would be bringing him some tea right about now. Possibly even that green tea he loved so much. Instead, he had to deal with no tea, not even a glass of water, and ambiguous questions from Raiko.

“I don’t pretend to be a mind-bender, Mr President. What was the information? Is it about the VarriTransit system? Are we all good to move forward with that?” he asked, mentally crossing his fingers and toes. The transit system would be his greatest accomplishment thus far in Republic City. Raiko merely shook his head, picking up a file from his desk.

“No, Varrick. It’s not about that. I have here your permit to work in Republic City. Unfortunately, it expired three weeks ago, and you never filed for an extension.”

Varrick’s eyes widened and he leaned forward, forgetting for a moment that his legs were crossed. A moment later, after he had untangled his limbs, he bolted up and took the piece of paper from Raiko’s hands, scanning it over several times. There it was, in plain black ink. He wasn’t legal in Republic City anymore. How had he forgotten about this? The permit was his saving grace; it was what allowed him to do the things he did here! As he read through it a sixth time, he could feel sweat forming on his brow.

“Is there anything I can do? I can get an extension now, right?” Varrick glanced up at Raiko, his entire body tense. He couldn’t just pack up and leave the business he had built. The president shook his head.

“I’m sorry, but there’s nothing I can do. Because you’re still here after your permit expired, I will have to ask you to leave Republic City and return to the Southern Water Tribe. After a year, you can re-apply and come back. In the meantime, I will appoint someone to run Varrick Global Industries RC in your absence. How about Lu? I hear he’s a wonderful asset to the company,” he explained, standing up and taking the notice from Varrick. He set it back in the file and placed the file on top of a pile of other folders on his desk.

“But… I can run the company from the South. Varrick Global Industries is my life! And I just fired Lu, so there’s no way he can take over!” Varrick exclaimed, trying to process what was happening. Raiko sighed.

“You will still own your company. I just can’t have you legally in charge here in Republic City until you return with a valid permit in one year,” he answered, turning to the window, “I’m sorry, Varrick, but the law is the law, and whoever I appoint will have to do, since you legally lost your job three weeks ago.”

Varrick let out a groan, slumping back on the uncomfortable wooden chair. A long period of silence hung between the two men as he tried to think his way out of it. From the look in the reflection of Raiko’s eye in the window, nothing was going to work.

“I’m sorry, Varrick,” Raiko repeated, but a knock at the door interrupted him. The president called for whoever it was to come in, and Varrick twisted around, still glum, to see his saving grace smiling at him.

“Your assistant, Varrick?” Raiko asked from behind him. Varrick turned back and nodded, his mind already working quickly. "Well, she'll have to wait a moment. As I was saying, I'm terribly sorry, but this is an unavoidable situation. My hands are tied. Now, if you'll just sign this contract here, we can get on with the proceedings,” he said, sliding out a new piece of paper. Varrick didn’t hear him, though. He had an idea. A wonderful idea. An idea only Zhu Li could help him with. He glanced back at her, then back at Raiko, a grin spreading across his face.

“Actually, sir…” he gestured for Zhu Li to come closer. When she didn’t, he stood up and walked over to her, sliding his arm around her waist and holding her close, his grin stretching further. “I was hoping for a better opportunity to tell you, but… Zhu Li and I did the whole proposal thing while you were off on your visit to Fire Lord Izumi! We're getting married!"

~~~

Zhu Li couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Her and Mr Varrick, getting married? She wondered what crazy scheme her boss had in mind for getting out of whatever situation he was in. None of this made sense. Thankfully, Raiko seemed just as shocked.

“Married, you say?” he asked, stepping around the desk and leaning back on it, regarding them with a serious expression. “I wasn’t aware the two of you were in a relationship.”

“Well, Mr President, we never expected it ourselves, but when,” Mr Varrick squeezed his arm around her waist, drawing her closer, “two people come together, who has the right to tell them that it’s wrong? I love Zhu Li, and I would do anything to stay by her side, anything!”

She was starting to feel uncomfortable. Sure, Mr Varrick was touchy-feely and liked to get close to people physically, but this was too much. Raiko tilted his head.

“I suppose if you two are getting married, then since Zhu Li is a registered citizen of Republic City, then you would be able to stay. Just make it legal,” he said, glancing at Zhu Li with a curious look in his eyes. Zhu Li pieced together what she had heard so far and finally realized what was going on. She owed it to Mr Varrick to act the part, so she put her hand on his chest, ignoring the small sound of surprise from her boss.

“Yes, sir. We will. Thank you for understanding,” she said politely, glancing up at the man she was supposedly engaged to. “Now, my love, you have an important meeting with the engineering department soon.”

“I—yeah, the engineering meeting. So sorry, Mr President, but I’ll have to go now. You’ll receive the legal documents on your desk before you can shake a racoon dog’s tail!” he chirped, barely waiting for the man’s response before quickly guiding Zhu Li out of the room, down the long hall lined with portraits of the previous council members, and out the door of City Hall.

Once they were outside, Zhu Li yanked on his arm, turning him to face her.

“What was that about?” she asked, ignoring the countless people walking by, ignoring that Raiko’s office window looked out over the street, ignoring the shocked expression on Mr Varrick’s face. “Proposal? Married???”

Her boss gulped, glancing to the side, anywhere but at her. “Zhu Li, you’ve got to understand, I was gonna lose my company! I was being deported, and I needed to do something to stay here, to save myself. You’ve got to help me!” he exclaimed, clapping his hands on her shoulders. She cringed just slightly, still confused.

“Why me, though? Everyone knows I’m just your assistant—“

“But we can change that! No one knows what goes on behind my closed door,” she cringed, “and no one knows if we get together outside of work! It’s completely believable! Just do this for me, please? Pretty please? We can even dissolve it once I’m legal again!”

She couldn’t deny that he needed her help to get out of this. But part of her wanted to get something for herself, too, and she had the perfect idea.

“I’ll help you, sir—“

“Yes! Thank you, Zhu Li!” Varrick swept her up into a hug, holding her closely, but she pushed him away.

“But you have to promise you’ll look at my designs,” she finished. As the sun shone overhead, she watched his expression closely. He seemed to think about it, then finally…

“Okay. That seems fair. Now, we should head over to the immigration office!” he exclaimed, his face brightening up. Zhu Li thought about it for a moment and shook her head.

“First, if we want this to look legit, then you need to get me a ring. And actually ask me.”

He stared at her blankly. “Ask you what?”

“Ask me to marry you,” she said, drawing in a breath. She was treading on dangerous grounds, of course. When he didn’t reply, she shrugged and turned to walk away. A hand touched her shoulder and she turned back. Varrick then bent down on a knee, holding out one of the rings he wore to make himself look fancier.

“Zhu Li, will you do the thing with me, at least until my permit extension comes through?” he asked, glancing up at her. She sighed, holding out her hand for him to slide the too-large ring on her finger.

“Of course, sir,” she said drily, spinning the ring with her thumb and forefinger. At least he had picked one of the nicer ones.

“Now the immigration office?” Varrick asked, a hopeful note to his voice. She nodded.

“Let’s go get you a spousal permit.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for checking this out and once again, I hope to continue updating this in the new year!


	4. Immigrations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My writing style has changed a bit in the last five years, and this is a bit of a shorter chapter to get myself back into the voices of Varrick and Zhu Li, but hopefully this is a good taste of what's to come!

Varrick couldn’t keep his leg from bouncing.

Beside him, Zhu Li was sitting ramrod straight, her hands folded neatly in her lap, a pleasant smile on her face. She was the picture of poise, and he couldn’t keep his leg still.

It wasn’t his fault, of course. Seated across the desk from them, Lin was staring down her nose at them, her eyebrows furrowed and her jaw set.

There wasn’t much that scared Varrick. In fact, he tended to be the one scaring other people. He couldn’t help it, of course. He had learned early in his career that he had to be the intimidating boss if he wanted people to take him seriously. But Lin Bei Fong, sitting across from him, staring him down? That scared him.

“Say it again,” the immigration officer said, her voice stern. Varrick gulped, then let out a breath.

“Zhu Li here and I are going to do the thing,” he started.

“He means get married,” Zhu Li cut in, her voice dry and toneless.

“Right. And that means I can apply for a spousal permit to stay in Republic City, right?” Varrick finished, leaning forward and resting his clasped hands on the edge of Lin’s desk. “Right?”

Lin was quiet for another moment, during which Varrick seriously considered dropping the entire facade and biting the proverbial fire bullet.

“I’m going to be entirely honest with you,” the officer said finally, rising to her feet and walking around the desk. Varrick leaned back in his chair, noticing that Zhu Li seemed unperturbed. “I think this is a sham. Don’t think I’m not aware of your current immigration status, Varrick.” She leaned in close to him, and he gulped. “But, of course, there is a way we can solve this little issue. You will both, of course, be subject to an interview. My colleague and I will ask you questions about each other, in separate rooms, and if your answers do not line up exactly…”

Varrick gulped again. “Then what?”

“Then you will both be convicted of fraud, you will be deported permanently to the Southern Water Tribe, and Miss Zhu Li will be subject to a heavy fine and jail time.”

He felt Zhu Li shift beside him, the first time she had moved.

“And when is this interview scheduled?” she asked, pushing her glasses up her nose.

“At your earliest convenience,” Lin replied, crossing her arms in front of her, “although I’m sure you’ll want to complete it as soon as possible, given the impending deadline you’re facing? Does tomorrow work? I can schedule you right now.”

“Oh, no, I’m so sorry,” Zhu Li said, reaching across and taking Varrick’s hand in hers. He glanced sideways at her, trying to read what she was doing. “Varrick and I are actually leaving tomorrow morning to go visit my family.”

He jumped on that. “Yes, to announce our engagement! They’re so excited to celebrate with us,” he chimed in.

“And just where does your family live?” Lin asked, her lips still pressed in such a fine line that Varrick couldn’t even see them. The worst part was, she was looking at Varrick, clearly expecting him to answer.

Where did Zhu Li’s parents live, anyway? Come to think of it, Varrick wasn’t sure he really knew anything about Zhu Li’s family. He only knew that she wasn’t originally from Republic City, although she probably had her immigration papers in order. Now he was wondering why Zhu Li hadn’t been on top of his own papers, until he forgot that he had been addressed.

“Well?” Lin asked, irritated.

“Ba Sing Se,” Zhu Li replied, squeezing his hand. “In the Earth Kingdom.”

The Earth Kingdom. Varrick swallowed, trying to keep the smile on his face. Great. He wasn’t well liked in the Earth Kingdom after he had scammed the Earth Queen. Lin was looking at him expectantly, though.

“Right, yes. Sorry, I just had an amazing idea for Varrick Industries.” He waved his hands, trying to pass it off, but Lin kept staring at him with cold eyes.

“And how long will you be there?” she asked.

“Just for a few days. It’s Nan’s birthday, you see,” Zhu Li explained, and Varrick nodded along despite having no idea what she was talking about. “We’re taking the new train there, and we’ll be back by this time next week. We can take your interview--”

“Then! We’ll take the interview then,” Varrick cut in, giving an over-exaggerated nod of his head. “See? Everything’s going to be fine, Chief Bei Fong! You’ll get your interview, and I’ll get to enjoy Nan’s birthday surrounded by all of Zhu Li’s lovely relatives!”

After another long pause, Lin finally nodded. “Fine.” She reached behind her, grabbing a piece of paper and scribbling on it. “But just know that I will be sending someone to check on you, and if you are not the happy couple you claim to be, then you will suffer the consequences.”

Varrick nodded, slinging his arm around Zhu Li’s shoulders. “Works for us! See you in a week,” he said, taking the paper from her and handing it immediately to Zhu Li without reading it. He then rose to his feet, practically dragging his assistant (and now fiancée?) out the door.

When they were back out on the street, he rounded on her. “You were a genius in there!” he exclaimed, wringing Zhu Li’s hand and ignoring the grimace on her face. “That story about your Nan, and meeting your family? Perfect! Now we have time to get our stories straight and then, bam! We’ll pass the interview!”

“Except it wasn’t a story,” Zhu Li replied, shrugging. “My nan’s birthday really is in a couple of days. I asked for the week off three months ago, and you denied it. This is me, now, asking for this week off again, since you need this anyway.”

Varrick paused, staring at her, blinking. “I see. So, we’re really going to Ba Sing Se?”

Zhu Li nodded. “To meet my family, yes. And prepare for that interview.”

Varrick faked a smile, glancing back at the immigration office building disappearing behind them as they walked down the street, back towards his own building.

“Right, of course.”

“It won’t be too difficult for me,” Zhu Li said drily, “since I already know everything about you. You’ll have to study up.”

“What?” Varrick asked, his voice rising a few pitches. “I know you.”

“What’s my favourite colour?” she asked, turning to him.

Varrick squinted, glancing her up and down before raising a finger in the air. “Green!”

“Wrong,” Zhu Li said, folding her arms in front of her. “Yellow.”

“But everyone from the Earth Kingdom likes green!” Varrick whined, his hands on her shoulders. “Why do you have to be different?”

“Because I’m an individual,” Zhu Li replied, making eye contact with him for the briefest moment before turning away and continuing to walk.

Varrick loped to catch up with her. “Okay, then, fine. I’ll study. When do we leave for Ba Sing Se?”

“The 8am train tomorrow morning,” Zhu Li replied.

Varrick groaned. He hated mornings.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and kudos make my day!
> 
> Next chapter, we'll get into the meaty part of the movie with these two :)


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